JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – University of South Carolina Aiken head volleyball coach Glenn Cox moved into sole possession of first place for career wins in the program's history as his team picked up a 3-0 victory over Carson-Newman and a 3-1 win over Lincoln Memorial Saturday afternoon.

The Pacers are now 17-3 on the season.

After earning his second win of the afternoon, Cox now has 163 career wins. Heading into the day, he was tied with former coach Will Condon for the all-time program lead.

In the opening match against the Eagles, USC Aiken made quick work of the home team. Taylor Stratton led the way with a match-best 16 kills, which is the 10^th most in school history in a three-set match. Christine Carroll led the way with eight kills while hitting .500. Julia Forster, Amber Hendry and Alicia Hines had five kills apiece.

Emily Teelon led the way with a match-high 29 assists despite playing in a 6-2 offense for part of the match. Chelsey Watts contributed five assists.

Defensively, Danielle Mercer posted a match-best 14 digs. Stratton added seven digs while Watts chipped in six.

Trailing 5-4 in the opening frame, Forster tied things with a kill. Stratton posted back-to-back kills for a 7-5 margin and the team never looked back. Three straight errors by the home squad made it 10-5 for Cox's team.

After a point by the Eagles, USC Aiken answered with four straight markers thanks in part to a pair of kills from Stratton and one from Teelon. Leading 23-18, Stratton and Carroll notched back-to-back kills for the first set win.

Leading 15-14 in the second stanza, Stratton and Hines tallied back-to-back points. An error by the Eagles made it 18-15. With the score at 20-17, Stratton had a kill. On the next play, Hines and Stratton stuffed an attempt for a point. Stratton's kill off a pass from Teelon pushed it to 23-17. After C-N pulled within two at 23-21, Lauren Howard found Hines for a point. Then, Howard hit Avery Macklin for the game-winner.

USC Aiken held an 11-8 edge in the third frame before running off nine of the next 11 points. Errors doomed the Eagles in the final stanza as three of the final five points for the Pacers came via miscues from the home squad.

In the nightcap against the Railsplitters (16-3), Cox's team squared off against one of the best in the region. Stratton led the way with 17 kills. Hendry tallied 12 kills while Christine Carroll and Forster each added 10 in the victory.

Teelon notched a double-double with 48 assists and 13 digs.

Defensively, Rebecca Martinez posted a career-high 18 digs. Mercer added 16 digs and five assists. Stratton's 10 digs allowed her to accumulate a double-double.

At the net, Carroll had a career-best five block assists in addition to one solo stuff. Hines, Hendry and Teelon each registered three blocks.

USC Aiken trailed 20-19 in the first set, but a service error knotted the contest. Another miscue by LMU and a kill from Carroll off a pass from Hotson gave Cox's team a 22-20 advantage. After two points by the Railsplitters, Forster and Stratton slammed home passes from Teelon and Martinez, respectively. The Pacers claimed the first set when Carroll and Teelon combined for a block.

Although USC Aiken had a 21-19 lead in the second frame, the designated home squad rattled off six straight points for the win.

The third stanza was a back-and-forth affair. The Pacers had a 21-20 lead, but LMU posted back-to-back points before Stratton found the court to knot it at 22-22. She followed it up with an ace before Hendry and Hines combined for a block. Leading 24-23, Hines sent the Pacers to the fourth set with a 2-1 lead on a kill off a pass from Teelon.

After Stratton tied the contest at 1-1 in the fourth frame, Teelon stepped back to serve and helped the Pacers rattle off seven straight points for an 8-1 lead. It gave USC Aiken a solid cushion that it would not relinquish as the team breezed to the 25-17 victory.  

The Pacers return to action Wednesday when they travel to Georgia College at 7 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.